Yesterday, I mentioned that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is no longer so keen on The Golden Compass, and I was fortunate enough that Deborah Caldwell-Stone of the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom saw that post and sent in a bulletin from the Catholic News Service confirming the negation of that original review, written in collaboration by the USCCB Office for Film and Broadcasting's director and staff reviewer. "Most moviegoers with no foreknowledge of the books or [Philip Pullman's] personal belief system will scarcely be aware of religious connotations," that original review noted, "and can approach the movie as a pure fantasy-adventure," as distinct from "the blatant real-world anti-Catholicism" of films like The Da Vinci Code. "To the extent, moreover, that Lyra and her allies are taking a stand on behalf of free will in opposition to the coercive force of the Magisterium, they are of course acting entirely in harmony with Catholic teaching."

But, the CNS confirms, for reasons as yet unrevealed, the bishops have chosen to withdraw that assessment from the public eye. For anybody who might be interested, though, Caldwell-Stone was kind enough to pass on a PDF file of the original review.